New Courses May Be Offered At Chatham Middle And High School

CHATHAM, NJ — Each year, the School District of the Chathams’ Board of Education approves the courses of study for Chatham Middle and High Schools.

On Monday night, Principal Jill Gihorski of Chatham Middle School and High School Principal Darren Groh presented to the board and the public about any changes that are being considered to course curriculums in each of the schools.

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“Once we have the programs of study adopted,” said Superintendent Dr. Michael LaSusa, “they [the schools] can put the boots on the ground and begin to schedule students for the following school year.”

Middle School Changes Proposed

The main changes proposed for the Middle School were in Family and Consumer Science cycles, Gihorski said, with classes piloted in this area during the 2021-2022 school year.

After previously running Family and Consumer Science courses that were more traditional, focusing on kitchen safety, following recipes and the like, students are now able to take a more creative approach, said Gihorski, by focusing on “culinary creativity” and learning “about business and craft of cooking.”

“CMS Top Chef” is being replaced by “Culinary Craft” for sixth graders, where they speak to professional chefs, learn tips and tricks and create recipes from scratch, among the course requirements.

“The World Through Foods” is being replaced with “Recipe Slam,” Gihorski said, which is a takeoff to The Food Network’s “Chopped,” with students given a secret ingredient that they need to use in a recipe they are given. Once they come up with their recipe and their foods are judged, there’s a “Slam” between students in the running for the best recipe creations. A component exists in this class to foster students’ writing and blogging skills, where they blog about their experiences.

For eighth grade’s curriculum, “Food Truck Face Off” is the replacement for “Textile Design,” Gihorski explained, where students come up with a food truck idea together in the kitchen, creating a business plan, signature recipes and promoting their truck. From there, students will “face off” to market their food truck concept and dish out their recipes.

The middle school plans to swap Geometry 1 with Algebra 1 for eighth graders Gihorski said, with 17 accelerated students now in seventh grade taking Geometry 1, who will then be taking Algebra 1 in eighth grade.

Changes at the High School Proposed

Groh said the high school is “getting back into the swing of things,” with "everyone back into the building," along with full classes. There are two additions for juniors and seniors for the 2022-2023 school year that they haven’t been running currently, Groh continued, with “Advanced Placement Human Geography," along with a semester-long course, “History and Film.”

AP Human Geography, he said, will “explore how humans understood, used and changed the surface of the earth,” learning with the tools and processes that geographers implement to “understand human population.”

History and Film, Groh explained, will “examine historically-oriented films as secondary sources of information about the past and primary sources reflecting when they were made.”

There are changes to English 12 and also Art, said Groh, in how they will be run. For the past decade, the senior English courses have been on a semester-long schedule, with contemporary non-fiction typically in the first semester and contemporary fiction in the second. This course, instead, will be expanded into a full-year offering, with a choice between Contemporary Fiction, Contemporary Non-Fiction or Global Literature.

Within the Art Department, Level 2 Ceramics, Drawing and Graphic Design will be added; and incoming ninth graders who are accelerated in these areas won’t need to take the introductory course, but can jump into level one classes. The second level, Groh said, allows more choices for students “looking to continue in that sequence through our pre-AP and AP offerings.”

Capstone honors electives including Short Films, Design Studio, Advanced Robotics and Entrepreneurship are taken by 11th and 12th graders after students have taken preliminary coursework, with the school looking to add honors credits to the courses. Advanced Robotics 2 would be an advanced level course added, with seniors only eligible for it.

Along with the Middle School switch in Geometry and Algebra, the high school plans to flip Geometry and Algebra 1, Groh said, with their appropriate levels. Statistics will also be renamed “Data Science.”

Students will become familiar with the new courses and changes in January, Groh said, with scheduling taking place in the beginning of February, for September 2022.

Questions From The Board On The Proposed Changes

School Board President Jill Critchley Weber asked Groh if AP Human Geography had any prerequisites, with Groh responding that US 1 is for ninth graders and US 2 for 10th. This course would fall into the same sequence as other AP courses, with students able to take World Studies in their junior year and currently an AP course.

Weber called it a “very robust offering of advanced placement courses,” which she said is a “double-edged sword.” Her concern was that students could become too stressed with the number of AP courses, which Groh said that the school counselors working with students and families, help them make the best decisions possible, while they monitor students throughout the school year.

After Weber complimented the idea of the History In Film course, expecting it will be popular, Groh said the high school is aiming for up to 36 students enrolled among three potential course sections.

Board Member Michelle Clark asked Gihorski where students would be able to gain experience in Textile studies, with the course removal, as well as questions about the other courses, which she said “sound amazing and really fun and engaging.” She asked this question, with a course in Textiles added at the high school level, Clark said she was worried about a lost audience at the middle school.

While Gihorski answered that they’re keeping an eye on that possibility, the decision was driven by staffing “and the lack of teachers who are actually able to teach a textile course.”

“The staffing really dictated the changes in our courses,” Gihorski said.

The STEM Creativity and Design course, she said, does involve sewing and creation of different textiles. Sewing machines have been moved into the biggest STEM classroom, Gihorski continued. The PTO has an after school enrichment program for sewing and design as well, which is currently full, she added.

Weber told Gihorski she liked the idea of the consumer science classes, which not only exposes students to the art of cooking but the business side of it, which may include writing, problem-solving and other vital skills.

Watch the full presentations by the principals in the clip below.

Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.